Q. Hello! In fiction, when describing what a sign says, should that text be in italics? Example: “The sign on the wall said NO DOGS ALLOWED.” If the answer is yes, where can I find this in CMOS? Thank you!
A. In Chicago style, italics wouldn’t normally be used for referring to the words on a sign, which can usually be presented in headline style (i.e., title case): No Dogs Allowed. If the words on the sign are in all caps, however, all caps may be retained (or, subject to a designer’s discretion, small caps): NO DOGS ALLOWED. A longer notice may be placed in quotation marks and treated as an ordinary quotation. See also CMOS 7.61.